Tanya Neary started a handmade clothing business out of her house in Mount Uniacke, N.S., in 2008. “O Sweet Madeline” started with hand-sewn pouches and hair clips. When she got her new sewing machine, she transitioned to dresses and clothing. “I was a stay-at-home mom, still am, and I was looking for something to do so I started making felt sweaters,” says Neary. “I would buy scrap fabric off of Etsy and make little pouches and I started attending markets and over the years it just kinda grew,“ In 2023, Neary started making easter eggs using fabric scraps. They’ve been popular but this year they exploded. She has already made and shipped between 800 and 900 of them across Canada since launching on March 1. “This is my third year making them and Madeline posted on a made in Canada group and the orders just started coming in,” says Neary. “I have mailed them all across Canada the last couple weeks and it has been amazing.” Neary’s daughter Madeline is the inspiration behind the name. She has always helped with the company but in 2023 she took on a bigger role managing social media and creating the eggs. “We had a viral Tik Tok that reached 300,000 people about the eggs,” says Madeline. “Then again I posted in a made in Canada group which reached 200,000 people and got 1,700 likes and the orders just kept coming in.” Madeline comes home every weekend from Acadia University to help with the company. This has opened other doors for her; she’s started managing other local companies’ social media pages as well. “I do social media as a full-time job as a University student so I understand how much of an impact it has,” says Madeline. “We have seen so much growth in our Instagram and TikTok page. We have almost over 3,000 TikTok followers and it helps our reach so much and our orders and helps people see the products we have.” Each egg is $2.50 and they are sold in packs of six with a variety of prints that include flowers, animals, nautical themes and bright colours. They are intended to be a sustainable option for Easter egg hunters. “We encourage people to use what they have,” says Neary. “I use both when I do our Easter egg hunts and it’s a nice alternative for people and they are cute and you don’t have to worry about them breaking into tiny pieces and end up in a landfill.” Madeline says she’s proud of her mother for coming so far and the help she’s given. She said their bond strengthens with every egg. “This has definitely brought us closer together,” she said. “We for sure butt heads sometimes but we love each other,” The mother-daughter duo has plans to crack new sales records. “One of the best parts is the amazing people I have met,” says Neary. “Whether it’s other vendors or your customers, and they become your friends over time and that’s really special.” Clothing, accessories and eggs can be purchased on the O Sweet Madeline website or at local markets in Nova Scotia. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
